Chapter Eight #4
“You were tangled in string lights and threatening decorative lighting.”
“That was not my best moment.”
“It was one of mine.”
“Aaron.”
“I brought coffee because Tyler asked me to check on you. I stayed because I wanted to know you.”
Meagan looked at him.
“When did you know?”
“That I wanted more?”
She nodded.
“When you held my hand in Hailey’s kitchen.”
“That was practice.”
“You kept holding it after everyone stopped watching.”
She remembered the warmth of his fingers.
“I knew I was in trouble after the volleyball game,” he continued. “You laughed when I lifted you.”
“That was involuntary.”
“That was the point. You looked happy before you remembered to protect yourself from it.”
Her throat tightened.
“And the first kiss?”
“I knew before it happened.”
“What did you know?”
“That if I kissed you, pretending would become impossible.”
“Then why did you?”
“You nodded.”
The simple answer struck deeply.
She had chosen that kiss too.
Even before she trusted the choice.
Aaron brushed a loose strand of hair from her face.
“I am not asking you to decide everything tonight.”
The supervisor’s email returned to her.
New York.
The life waiting after the gala.
“You already know I may have to leave.”
“I know.”
“You could ask me not to go.”
“I could.”
“But you won’t.”
His gaze held hers.
“I want you to stay.”
The words came without hesitation.
“But I don’t want you to stay because I asked before you knew whether it was what you wanted.”
“You make every decision sound like it belongs to me.”
“It does.”
“That is exhausting.”
“You can ask for help.”
“What should I do?”
His expression softened.
“That is not the kind of help I can give.”
“Why not?”
“Because I know what I want.”
He placed her hand against his chest.
“I want more mornings. More coffee. More arguments about breakfast. I want to play volleyball with you and lose control of my storage system because you reorganized it.”
“It needs labels.”
“I know.”
“What else?”
“I want to be the person you call when nothing needs fixing.”
The words settled through her.
“I want you when you are useful because that is part of you. But I also want you when you are tired, undecided, difficult, happy, quiet, or losing an argument with string lights.”
Meagan’s eyes burned.
“I want you when you do not know what happens next.”
“That seems impractical.”
“Extremely.”
“You still want it?”
“Yes.”
The answer held no uncertainty.
For the first time, being wanted did not feel like a debt she would eventually have to repay.
“What happens when the gala ends?” she asked.
“The gala ends.”
“And us?”
“That depends on what you want.”
“You are doing it again.”
“Giving you room?”
“Yes.”
Aaron stepped closer.
“I am not going anywhere tonight.”
“That was not the question.”
“No.”
“Will you be here after?”
Hope moved across his face.
“If you ask me to be.”
Meagan closed her eyes.
Aaron pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.
The gesture was gentler than the kiss they had shared. Somehow, it undid her more completely.
She rested her head against his chest.
Aaron wrapped both arms around her.
No audience. No practical reason.
He simply held her, and Meagan let him.
Eventually, music and laughter drifted down from the gala.
Aaron’s hand moved slowly along her back.
“We should go inside.”
“Do we have to?”
“No.”
Meagan lifted her head.
He smiled.
“But Amanda will organize a search party.”
“That is a credible threat.”
“She may alert the Coast Guard.”
“She will claim it is romantic.”
Aaron picked up his jacket and Meagan’s shoes.
They walked toward the stairs hand in hand.
Near the bottom step, Meagan stopped.
“Rule six.”
His mouth curved.
“No feelings.”
“It was a poorly designed rule.”
“It lacked measurable standards.”
“It also failed.”
“Completely.”
“What do we do with it?”
Aaron pulled out his phone and opened the group chat.
“What are you doing?”
“Documenting a change.”
He typed.
Aaron: Rule six has been officially removed.
Amanda replied immediately.
Amanda: I KNEW IT!
Jack: Why are you checking your phone during the gala?
Amanda: Why are YOU?
Hailey: Are you both okay?
Tyler: I assume emergency services are not required.
Meagan took Aaron’s phone.
Meagan: No emergency. Rule four was also violated.
Three dots appeared from every participant.
Aaron laughed.
“That was reckless,” Meagan said.
“You’re becoming spontaneous.”
“Do not make me regret this.”
“Too late.”
They reached the terrace.
Amanda stood near the open doors with Hailey, staring toward them.
Her gaze moved to Meagan’s bare feet, then to Aaron carrying her shoes, and finally to their joined hands.
Her mouth opened.
Meagan lifted one finger.
“Not here.”
Amanda closed her mouth.
For one second.
“Was it romantic?”
Jack appeared behind her. “You were given a direct instruction.”
“I asked one question.”
Hailey looked at Meagan.
Concern and hope moved through her expression.
Meagan smiled.
A real smile.
Hailey’s face softened.
“You’re okay.”
“I am.”
Aaron placed Meagan’s shoes beside a chair.
She slipped them on while he held her hand for balance.
The gesture was practical.
Tender.
Entirely public.
Meagan no longer cared which category it belonged to.
Tyler approached and handed Aaron a folded program.
“You’re presenting the youth clinic award in five minutes.”
Aaron checked the time.
“I forgot.”
Tyler looked toward Meagan. “I assumed.”
Aaron turned to her.
“Come with me?”
“To the stage?”
“Near it.”
“You are working.”
“And I want you there.”
The answer came easily.
Meagan looked toward the ballroom filled with donors, athletes, and people who knew her as the woman who organized everything from the background.
Aaron was asking her to stand where he could see her.
Not because he needed help. Because he wanted her near him.
“Yes.”
They entered together.
Aaron took the stage beside Evelyn while Meagan stood near the front table.
He spoke about the foundation’s youth clinics and the volunteers who had expanded the program.
Then he looked toward Meagan.
“This year’s gala came together because many people did work no one will ever see.”
His gaze held hers.
“Sometimes the people who make an evening possible are the ones most likely to stand at the edge of it and insist they were only helping.”
Amanda made a small sound beside Meagan.
Aaron smiled.
“Before we present the clinic award, I want to thank Meagan Stirling for helping us remember what this foundation is really about.”
Applause rose around the room.
Meagan froze.
The instinct to step back came immediately. To wave away the recognition. To point toward Evelyn or the committee.
Aaron watched her from the stage.
No expectation.
Only pride.
Meagan remained where she was. She let the applause reach her. She let people see her.
Aaron lifted one hand slightly.
Not calling her forward.
Offering connection across the room.
Meagan smiled at him.
For once, she did not need to minimize what she had done to make everyone else comfortable.
Aaron had chosen her privately on the beach.
Now he was choosing her openly.
And for the first time, the truth felt more hopeful than frightening.